Food Plots and Where to Begin
Written By: Josh Glay
Food Plots, where to begin & starting your first clover food plot
You just acquired a new piece of property, got permission from a local landowner, or have a piece of family-owned land and you want to start a food plot. You are taking steps to create the perfect set up that will maximize your chances of getting a shot at that mature buck. If this is your situation, a plethora of food plot related questions come to mind.
Where do I want my food plots located?
What do I want to plant?
How many acres should I plant?
How do I deal with weeds?
I don’t want to fail.
Shade River Outdoors’ first crack at food plots failed miserably. Our second try at food plots was equally as bad, and even our third food plot showed embarrassing results. We started to get discouraged and think maybe this is impossible and can only be obtained by people who have access to big equipment with loads of time and money, but we were wrong. We just started with the wrong crops, not taking the right steps, and overlooking key parts to any successful food plot. We learned from the mistakes we were making and continued to plant and try new things. Like anything you need to crawl before you walk and walk before you run!
Start with the basics, and start small. A quarter or eighth of an acre is perfect for your first food plot at the edge of a field or a small clearing in the woods. Test your soil composition, this will tell you how much lime and fertilizer you will need for a successful crop yield; keep these numbers in mind as you start thinking about what to plant. Start with a perennial, SRO’s go to starting plots are Clover. Clover is one of those plants that are able to take off with limited focus, are hardy to environmental changes, and can be controlled with a mower and 2 herbicides. Any mistakes you make now will be learning experiences for future you when you are taking on bigger endeavors and multiple acres of plots.
Start small, not all plots need to be 5 acres
Let’s start with ¼ acre of clover in a corner of a field. Now where to begin? Pick a weekend in late spring that shows promise that rain is in the forecast in the coming days.
Follow these 4 steps,
Good kill of the current plants in the field
Lime and Fertilizer for the new food plot
Planting
Maintenance of the plot
Steps 1-3 can all be completed on the same day!
1. Good kill of the current plants in the field
Any good food plot starts with a good kill of all the weeds and grasses that are currently growing, get ahold of a tank sprayer this can be a handheld one or one that mounts on the back of a UTV. Buy Glyphosate 43% and surfactant from any local tractor supply or similar store. Glyphosate is the active chemical in round-up and will kill the existing plants in the field, the surfactant will help the chemical bond to the plant to get a better kill on the field. Only mow if the weeds are taller than 24 inches, mow prior to spraying but this needs to be done at least 5 day before spraying, plants will not take up enough glyphosate to die if they have been freshly cut.
One of our main clover plots, 6 days after initial spray
2. Lime and Fertilizer for the new food plot
This part is controversial, we have had good plots in the past without the help of lime but our soil was close to the needed PH for our crops to grow. If your ground is too acidic, you’ll need to spread lime. Luckily, with a ¼ acre, the lime will not be too difficult to spread. Follow the amounts stated on your soil test kit. For Perennials we wait to spread fertilizer till 3-4 weeks after germination.
3. Planting
Plant your clover seed the same day that you spray Glyphosate. No, this will not hurt the seed (Glyphosate is inert upon soil contact and has no effect on seeds spread and the dying crops above will act as a good cover over the freshly spread seeds. You do not need to disk, plow, or roughen up the soil. Clover seed is so small it will fall to the ground and make sufficient contact with the soil without these steps. Now cross your fingers and pray for rain.
4. Maintenance of the plot.
Once germination has occurred, this is where a good food plot becomes great, for the first 1.5- 2 months let nature do its thing. The clover will take root and grow; the issue is competition with weeds. To combat these weeds, mow the plot. Clover bounces back from mowing and grows even faster, outcompeting the weeds for more sunlight. This is a perfect time to spread fertilizer (19,19,19) or a liquid fertilizer like “PLOT BOOST”. After the first mow, wait to mow again until the clover flowers. Prior to the 2nd mowing here is where the herbicides come into play. Clethodim is a grass specific killer and can be found at the local tractor supply. 2,4-DB or “Butyrac 200” is a broadleaf herbicide but is safe for clover and other specific plants. (CAUTION: do not buy 2,4-D this will kill your clover plot) Read the charts on the container to determine the mix rate for your sized food plot.
Our main clover plot where one of our best bucks was taken last season
Final thoughts: When starting food plots, mistakes will be made but don’t get discouraged and continue to try new food plot mixes and planting times. You can follow guidelines that people talk about but each property is different, soil composition is different, rainfall is different, etc. All these uncontrollable external factors that drive the success of food plots. This is why it is necessary to develop a system that works best for you and remember to have fun and enjoy the sweat equity. Play your cards right and you just might be hammering a trophy buck come fall, over your very own food plot.
